Seduction of the Innocent

Hey guys, Slacksy here. And yup, this post has an all new title! I wasn't too crazy about the initial "Comic Book Confidential", and hey, if Marvel can change the titles of their X-Men books whenever they like, I figure I can do the same. But I digress....

The book I'd like to shine a light on this time is 100 Bullets by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso. Now it's not as if this comic hasn't received a lot of attention - it's received plenty. But because it's in its final arc and everything is coming to a close, it feels like the perfect time to introduce those new to the series to the greatness that is 100 Bullets. Basic plot synopsis: The mysterious Agent Graves finds people whose lives have been disrupted and destroyed and provides them with an attache case containing the evidence concerning the person who has ruined their life , a gun, and 100 untraceable bullets. He leaves them (seemingly without motive) with the choice of what to do with their newfound information, weaponry, and carte blanche. First off, this is a perfect example of a comic that transcends its genre. What at first appears to be a simple (well...not exactly) crime story (albeit a great one) becomes so much more. Best way to explain it: it's the greatest crime movie never made. Brian Azzarello gives every ounce of the story weight - nothing (and I mean nothing) is insignificant and every word spoken and every panel has a point and foreshadows what comes later. The lives of the massive cast of characters all intertwine one way or another, and the conflict becomes bigger and bigger as the story goes on, which leaves the reader entertained for a long time.

What also makes the book so great is the teamwork of Azzarello and Eduardo Risso. Risso's artwork fits the story perfectly, not only because of his dark and 'gritty' style, but because of how he complements Azzarello's storytelling methods. Risso's artwork is extremely attractive and draws the reader into the story, which is important because every detail needs attention paid to it. His use of the color black captures the eye and draws attention to crucial details in a surprisingly subtle way, and makes the reader want to decipher clues in each panel while also understanding clearly what is happening. The unique ways he builds scenes is also very interesting, from his almost cinematic point of view angle from inside a washing machine to his depiction of characters from the reflection in a tea kettle...well, you may have to see it to get what I'm talking about. Anyways, the perfect pairing of Azzarello and Risso makes for some amazing and intriguing storytelling. I literally read all of the available trades over the course of about 4 days and the story not once became even the slightest bit boring. No joke.

And of course, the entire 100 Bullets series is available at Comic Book Jones, so I really urge you guys to check it out. Trust me, if you hang out in the lounge and read the first volume, you'll end up buying all of the trades. Be sure to let me know what you think!

Slacks

THIS WEEK IN COMICS!! WEEK 16

Whats goin down in the land of comics? Well that's what I'm here for, Mr. LB Jones is here to let you know the whats good in comics and this time around we got some heavy hitters coming up to bat.
Emerging from Top Cow, we have Witchblade. Now a lot of us know about or of Witchblade and have maybe taken a peek here or there but have you been reading it. God is it good! Ron Marz came in at around issue 80 something and has completely made this book what it always should have been. It's an amazing blend of horror and superhero type stuff. A perfect example of that is in issue 116, the first case that Sara Pezzini is assigned to is to find out who crucified a bunch of guys in the various forms of crucification there are. And yes there are more than just the most famous one we all know of. So I have started to collect Witchblade starting at issue #116 which was last month's issue and I totally recommend this title.
Coming back out of obscurity from Image is SPAWN. Yes, I said Spawn. Since issue #150, Spawn has been absolutely the best book around. It's gone from cool superhero book to bad superhero book to even worse superhero book and than outta nowhere it's an AMAZING superhero book. Now it's a really gritty horror driven superhero book. I know that's a lot of change in one book but this change is good. The most recent story arc saw Spawn finding out about how the character Mammon has manipulated the Simmons family all the way from the wild west days to now. I would highly recommend this book for anyone looking for something that isn't bright and out there. Out of 5 stars, I would give Spawn a 3.8 to 4 stars.
Creeping in from DC, we have BATMAN. This month's issue was a nice in-between of 2 major stories. With the 3 Batmen arc having ended last issue and the R.I.P. arc starting next month, this month was a nice little one shot story that slowed down the paced and gets everyone ready for "R.I.P". I really can't say anything crazy about Batman cause he's Batman, He speaks for himself really. It's like when someone asks why he's cool, There is no answer. He's just Batman. Go with it.
Slicing and dicing their way from Marvel is X-Force. Now this book is the ultra violent Non MAX title. For anyone not in the know, X-Force is back. The current version of this team makes a lot more sense than the last one. I mean X-Force does sound more like a covert strike team then when Cable lead them and they were just another team of mutants for Xavier to all on. Another thing that makes this title awesome is that it is reaching into the X-Men history and bringing in elements that are new and linking them to the past. Like the current story is linked to the Phalanx Covenant story from the mid 9o's. So if your a buff for continuity and for the X-Men, you should totally be reading this book!!

THIS WEEK IN COMICS!! WEEK 15

Hey what's going on out there in Comic Book Land. It tis I, LB Jones, once again. Last week was really hectic with the sale on Friday and than with everyone coming by that weekend. So this week we have some pretty amazing things going on in the comic world.
Rocketing in from IMAGE we have SCUD the Disposable Assassin. Now the thing with SCUD is that the book was started over 10 years ago but wound up stopping for some reason and went unfinished till now. With one issue left for the series, SCUD scores the spotlight. So SCUD is all about a disposable assassin that you buy from a vending machine. The thing with this particular assassin is that he found out about how that when his mission is complete, he blows up. Well that's what the story was 10 yrs ago. Now SCUD is back from the dead and has to save the world for the woman he loves. And did I mention that this book is hilarious. Now come get this book!!
Emerging from a drunken stupor at Marvel is the INCREDIBLE HERCULES. Now since WWH, this book has been absolutely amazing. Hercules is hysterical as well as action packed. I mean Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente are perfect together. The little nods to other books for continuity is perfect and the art is awesome and just come read the damn thing! IT'S PURE GOLD !!
Also from Marvel we have IRON MAN:LEGACY OF DOOM. This the 3rd and final chapter of the Camelot series started way back in the 80's. David Michelinie writes one mean Iron Man Story and for a story that started over 20 yrs ago It was easy to follow. It pretty much goes that one day Tony Stark is destroying old armor and comes across a memory stick in one with a mission that Stark doesn't remember. From there the story rolls out pretty quickly and hits pretty quickly. Some of the dialog between Doom and Stark is hilarious and Stark speaks in such a manner that you can totally feel how he feels about Doom. So come on in and read some Legacy Of Doom, or so commands DOOM!
Coming from Alterna Comics, we have JESUS HATES ZOMBIES!! This book is absolutely amazing and everyone should read it. It's all little 5 page stories about Jesus fighting off zombies. That's all that really needs to be said but I will continue. We here at CBJ actually had the Writer and one of the artists in for a signing. The writer, Stephen Lindsay, is one of the coolest guys and was all about talking with everyone. He wrote all but I think 3 stories in the book and they all had me rolling while reading this particular comic book narrative. The artist who was here as well is Lauren Monardo. She is such an awesome artist and did an amazing Zombie Joker sketch for Gore. If you haven't read this book yet, come in and get to it.....NOW!!

THIS WEEK IN COMICS!! WEEK 14

Hey there all you Hip cats out in comic book land! It tis I, LB, once again to bring you the latest and greatest in the world of comics. This week we have some heroes who are INVINCIBLE, while others who are a bit more invaded. Also some trials have come to an end for a young hero while for others are on a quest for some closure.
Storming out of the IMAGE bullpen, we have INVINCIBLE. Now this week did not have a new issue but it did have me finishing reading the entire series graphic novel collection. So that's 8 volumes I've read in this here past week. Now I bet your saying to yourself "What makes Invincible so different from other superhero titles. Well I'll tell ya. Invincible is funny, action packed and the characters speak in the same vernacular as we do. A perfect example of the speaking in the same way is in the latest issue when Invincible catches his college roommate/life long friend trying on his costume. The entire scene is said roommate trying to explain why he's wearing it and Invincible calling him gay with a smile on his face so you know he's only messing around. Now at some point in your life something in the nature of that has happened to you and thats been the response. Another thing great about this book is that it's all contained to itself. There is no need to go and read 4 other books to understand it. It's you read trade one and your set. You don't need to read any other book to understand what happens because it's all there. Now finish reading this blog and come get some Invincible. You will not be disappointed.
Rocketing in from deep MARVEL space we have SECRET INVASION, which quite honestly one of the best books of the year. It's only issue one and all hell has broken loose on the Marvel Universe and it's only gunna get worse for some characters. I'm just letting ya guys know that a lot of questions are answered while a whole boat load are created and brought to the surface. Skrulls are revealed and heroes are turned into goo. Yes I said heroes are turned into goo. Now go read it!
Like a thunderbolt from DC, we have the last chapter of The Trials Of SHAZAM! Freddy Freeman has gone through a lot in the past year and boy how does it end. Demons, Magic and The Justice League?! Yeah that right the JLA show up and we all know how Big Blue and magic go together. If you haven't been reading this YOUSE A SUCKA! Totally worth grabbing the first trade and reading it. Judd Winick takes an old character and brings him up to date. So come on down and get your shazam on!
And last but surely not least we have YOUNG AVENGERS PRESENTS! Oh boy is this book good. Each issue is a spotlight on a different member of the Young Avengers. This month the focus was on Wiccan and Speed, The children of the SCARLETT WITCH. The whole focus of these two characters is on finding Wanda Maximoff is, so that way they can talk to her and figure out all the jazz surrounding them. To really go into what happens in detail would spoil it for ya so I'm goin to stop right there and say PEACE!
*LB was than struck by lightning and had to be rushed to the hospital because of the burns*

TALES FROM THE BACK ISSUE BIN!! VOL.5!!!!

Hey, Waffle here with another installment of "Tales From The Back Issue Bin!!".

This weeks book is Alias 16, from the "Alias" section. It’s the beginning of an arc, so I wasn’t too lost.

To start off. This book was AMAZING. Plain and simple. Bendis is an amazing writer. This at least doesn’t just through me in. It starts off in a deli which is about to be robed. The main character, Jessica Jones*cough*skrull*cough*, Stops the robbery and flees. On returning to her apartment she finds the new Spider-Woman in her bathroom. After this confrontation, Spider-Woman flees crying. Scared, Jessica calls Scott Lang, Ant-Man. She ends up staying at his place, searching for who Spider-Woman is. She calls up a friend in S.H.I.E.L.D. and finds out. After getting a hard time, she curses out S.H.I.E.L.D. After which, her phones rings, and it’s her friend in S.H.I.E.L.D. telling her not to do that. Yadda yadda yadda, she confronts J. Jonah Jameson.I wanna’ read more. NOW! I think I shall.

I’ll give Alias 16, 4 out of 5 special gold stars.

Join me next week when I tackle an Alpha Flight issue.
*Does the Charleston*
TALES FROM THE BACK ISSUE BIN!